The same question is pertinent in the business world. The more powerful you become, the more rich, the more senior in a company, the more seasoned in your field, the more we condone (and even encourage, I believe) bad behavior. If a 22 year old assistant send a scathing email to a colleague, he or she might be put on the firing block. But if a high level VP or C-level individual sends the same email to the same colleague, it’s chalked up to their stress level, their experience, or their rank in the hierarchy. Just like celebrities, the higher you rise in fame or fortune in the corporate world, the more we (as a society and as subordinates) condone your bad behavior.
Is it possible, though, to reverse this kind of behavior? A superior of mine once said about a badly behaving colleague, “I think we’re about forty years too late in teaching this person manners.” And as German physicist Max Planck once said, “Science advances one funeral at a time.” Maybe we can’t change the behavior today, but we can prevent it in the future.
The responsibility here falls not to those with the bad behavior, unfortunately. But to us. As a generation who will likely fill those offices and seats at the table. It is our responsibility to become the responsible and respectful generation, one who does not gain bad behaviors like scathing emails and demanding 5:00pm requests of our staff. We have to be the generation who says “Thank you” and “I appreciate your hard work.” We can’t change the current top of the totem pole, but we can change the way we behave on our way there and once we get there. I implore us all to be…..the Dakota Fanning of the business world…not the Lindsay Lohan.
About the Author: Marcy Twete
Marcy Twete is the Founder and CEO of Career Girl Network and the author of the book “You Know Everybody! A Career Girl’s Guide to Building a Network That Works.” At Career Girl Network, Marcy provides women with information, resources, and networking to empower them in their careers and to advance the work of women in business as a whole. Prior to launching Career Girl Network, Marcy worked in numerous nonprofit organizations and as a consultant in the field of nonprofit fundraising, marketing, and community relations. Marcy is a graduate of the College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph, Minnesota, and a native of rural North Dakota. She is the Vice Chair of the Chicago Board of Directors for Step Up Women’s Network in Chicago and a member of the Advisory Board for Girls on the Run Twin Cities, and is dedicated to advancing the work of organizations that move the needle for women and girls worldwide.
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